I am taking my reflection from the Passion narrative of Luke’s gospel just at the end of it which states “All Jesus acquaintances, including the women who followed Him from Galilee, stood at a distance, watching these things.”
Hopefully as you read this reflection the weather will be more inviting and welcoming but today I want to reflect on the terrible cold weather of just a few months ago. I was driving down Main Street in Hamilton on the absolute coldest day I have ever experienced. My car was delightfully warm. I was so spoiled as to even have the seat warmers on. However there I passed a younger man holding onto a pole without the proper clothing, no boots, no hat, no gloves. This intersection is possibly one of the busiest in Hamilton. While I was distressed to see this individual and annoyed that it had interrupted my comfort, I was sure somebody else would help him. I continued on my way for a substantial distance when I came to my senses and realized I had to make sure he was ok. I turned around and there he was in the same place with nobody there with him. I felt I was doing my civic duty asking if I could call an ambulance for him but could get no response. I went on a little way further and did call 911 but the dispatcher said that an ambulance could not be sent only if he had given permission for it and that the police would not come to check on somebody like him because they were too busy. I tried to tell her that this man must have some psychiatric issues but it became an argument as to how I could assess this? Once again I drove around the block and there he was but this time somebody was trying to put some gloves on him. He agreed to get into the car and I tried again to phone for an ambulance. Thank God this other man did get through and an ambulance was coming…
From the back seat of my car I could hear the man repeating over and over again how troubled he was. Finally the ambulance arrived and the woman attendant could not have been more attentive and compassionate to him.
I, too, was troubled as I drove away, wondering what we as a city have come to? Do you have to be rich, or influential in order to be treated fairly? The very next day I wrote a letter to the police chief, outlining how I was treated and ultimately what poor attention this man received. One of the police chief’s assistant’s contacted me and assured me that they would look into the matter. Her response was that her father has Alzheimer’s and it could have been him out in the cold. The good news is that a week later the woman contacted me again to say that all of the people involved were spoken to and that action had been taken. She was most appreciative of the feedback and felt that in her words “this was the best resolution of a case that she has handled in her twenty-two years of service".
Today I am questioning myself - how often do I simply watch from a distance, not choosing to get involved? Is my relationship with Jesus from a distance or is it so intimately alive that I will put myself out there for the poor? Then at Mass shortly after this episode our Deacon quoted from Mother Theresa who said, "How can I truly recognize the poor among us if I am too poor to pray?" My prayer is that I (we) continue to see with our eyes wide open!
- Sister Ann Marshall